Oakland, CA – Today a group of 13 Oregon labor leaders sent a tax-day letter to the Oregon congressional delegation. The letter is aimed at pushing the delegation to take aggressive action towards ending the costly war in Afghanistan, and compared steep cuts in domestic spending to the ongoing costs of the war.

According to the letter's signers, "Oregonians have already spent more than $3 billion on the war, and there is no end in sight. President Obama’s proposed 2012 budget includes devastating cuts that impact the poor and working class—from low income home heating assistance to community service block grants to Pell grants—while allocating another $107 billion to continue the war in Afghanistan."

Signers include Richard Sanders, the Executive Director of the Oregon Education Association. He said, "Working Oregonians continue to feel the brunt of an ongoing financial crisis. We need our congressional delegation to do everything possible to ease their burden. The more than $3 billion Oregonians have already spent on the war in Afghanistan is not making America or Oregonians more secure. Instead of continuing to spend our tax dollars in Afghanistan, we need to invest most of that money in our schools, helping seniors and those most in need and, above all, in creating good-paying jobs in Oregon and across America. This is the best way to make America more secure and to secure the future of our children."

The full text of the letter and a complete list of signers can be viewed here: http://blog.peaceactionwest.org/2011/04/18/2802/

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Peace Action West advocates for a foreign policy that embodies the best values of the American people. As a membership organization with close to 50,000 supporters, we foster broad-based civic activism to create a strong voice for peaceful and pragmatic solutions to global problems. Our activities serve as a bridge between the public and the officials who make decisions that affect the lives of millions of people. More information on the organization and its campaigns is available at www.PeaceActionWest.org.